Lope de Vega's 'La dama boba' comes to Sagunto's Roman Theatre this Thursday
The 43rd edition of the Sagunt a Escena festival stages Lope de Vega's 'La dama boba' this Thursday, 13 August, at Sagunto's Roman Theatre, as part of a day that also includes the show 'Caso enterrado'.
Finished, according to the playwright's own handwritten manuscript, on 28 April 1613, 'La dama boba' ('The Foolish Lady') takes the stage of the Roman Theatre this Thursday as part of the Sagunt a Escena festival programme. The festival has now run for more than thirty editions and has become the leading summer performing-arts event in the Valencian Community.
The performance, scheduled for 22:30, is directed by Josep Maria Mestres, with text adaptation by Xus de la Cruz. The play follows the classic tangle between love and reason, with the misunderstandings, eccentric characters and fast-paced dialogue typical of its author — one of the most prolific playwrights in history, credited with several hundred comedies, which earned him the nickname "Fénix de los Ingenios" ("Phoenix of Wits"). The plot follows the transformation of Finea, the lead character, who discovers unexpected intelligence and cunning in herself and becomes a discreet lady. The show is designed to be accessible and inclusive for all audiences.
The day starts earlier, at 20:00, with 'Caso enterrado' ("Buried Case"), staged at Plaza Cronista Chabret. It is the first work as a collective by Colectiv Notknown, a Valencian company made up of four multidisciplinary artists trained at the Creat circus school. The piece blends circus, dance and physical theatre to tell the story of the alleged killing of a two-hundred-year-old ficus tree belonging to the de la Cruz family, whose four members become the main suspects. Despite being its debut work, the production has already won the 2024 Llavoretes Award at the Contorsions Festival in Valencia and the 2025 Alacant a Escena Award.
The Sagunt a Escena festival is organised by the Conselleria d'Educació, Cultura i Universitats (the Valencian regional education and culture department) through the Institut Valencià de Cultura (IVC), in collaboration with the Diputació de València (Valencia Provincial Council) and Sagunto City Council. This 43rd edition's programme follows other titles already staged this summer at the Roman Theatre, including the festival's opening production, Visitants, and a comic opera starring singer Coque Malla. It has also stirred political debate, after the Compromís party called for more of the programme to be staged in Valencian.
For residents of the Camp de Morvedre district, Thursday's double bill offers another chance to enjoy the Roman site and Sagunto's town centre on a summer night, with two very different stage works — a classic comedy and a contemporary creation — aimed at different audiences. According to Valencia Plaza and El Periódico de Aquí, with additional background from Sagunt a Escena (IVC) and Wikipedia.